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Global semiconductor sales down 3.6% in 1Q 2020

Sales in March increase 0.9 percent month-to-month and 6.9 percent year-to-year; full impact of COVID-19 crisis not yet captured in available sales data

WASHINGTON — The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) today announced worldwide sales of semiconductors totaled $104.6 billion during the first quarter of 2020. First-quarter sales decreased 3.6 percent compared to the previous quarter, which is in line with typical seasonal trends, and increased 6.9 percent compared to the first quarter of 2019.

Global sales for the month of March 2020 were $34.9 billion, an increase of 0.9 percent compared to the previous month’s total and 6.9 percent more than sales from March 2019. Monthly sales are compiled by the World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) organization and represent a three-month moving average. SIA represents 95 percent of the U.S. semiconductor industry by revenue and nearly two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms.

“First-quarter global semiconductor sales slipped somewhat compared to the fourth quarter of 2019, but monthly totals for March increased month-to-month and year-to-year, indicating the available sales data has not yet fully captured the impacts of the COVID-19 health crisis,” said John Neuffer, SIA president and CEO. “Ongoing macroeconomic turmoil related to the pandemic has caused significant uncertainty for the global semiconductor market that is likely to persist in the months ahead.”